The __________ principle directs a decision maker to act according to a specific, unbending rule.

The __________ principle directs a decision maker to act according to a specific, unbending rule.

• A. Generalization
• B. Imperative
• C. Utilitarian
• D. Golden mean

Answer: (C)

An imperative is a rule that tells you to act in a certain way regardless of the situation, a duty-bound command. In ethics this is often discussed as the categorical imperative—an unconditional directive you would want to apply everywhere, not just in some cases. That unbending quality is what the question is pointing to: a principle that requires following a fixed rule. In contrast, utilitarian thinking guides actions by the outcomes they produce for overall happiness and can vary with circumstances. The golden mean describes virtue as moderation between extremes rather than a single fixed command. Generalization is about testing whether a rule could be universalized, not about following a specific unvarying rule itself. Therefore, the principle described is the imperative.

An imperative is a rule that tells you to act in a certain way regardless of the situation, a duty-bound command. In ethics this is often discussed as the categorical imperative—an unconditional directive you would want to apply everywhere, not just in some cases. That unbending quality is what the question is pointing to: a principle that requires following a fixed rule. In contrast, utilitarian thinking guides actions by the outcomes they produce for overall happiness and can vary with circumstances. The golden mean describes virtue as moderation between extremes rather than a single fixed command. Generalization is about testing whether a rule could be universalized, not about following a specific unvarying rule itself. Therefore, the principle described is the imperative.